Coker Says Season About Hearts, Flowers

December 3, 2001|By Harvey Fialkov Staff Writer

CORAL GABLES — On the morning after University of Miami coach Larry Coker and his team clinched a berth in next month's national championship game in the Rose Bowl, he was wearing his Sunday-best dark suit.

It suited him perfectly because his top-ranked Hurricanes (11-0) have been Saturday's best.

"It's just an awesome feeling for these players and our staff to have an opportunity to go to Pasadena to play for a national championship this year," Coker said. "Our opponent, we really don't care. Whoever wins their part of it and comes through the computer, that's who we'll play."

It appears that opponent will be Tennessee (10-1), which catapulted to No. 2 in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll after shocking the Gators on Saturday. If Tennessee defeats LSU this Saturday in the SEC Championship Game, it will mean an all-orange clash on Jan. 3.

There's no doubt who's No. 1, as the Hurricanes were a unanimous choice in the AP poll, and captured 59 of the 60 votes from the coaches. A loss by Tennessee, however, would open the BCS door for Nebraska (11-1) or Oregon (10-1).

"From what I saw, Tennessee is an excellent team," said Coker, who was only able to catch the highlights. "They deserve to be in the mix as much as anybody, but I'm sure Oregon does and I'm sure Nebraska's coming back into the hunt. They have to worry about computers and they could sit around the TV set. We'll get the video and get ready to play whoever shows up."

Unlike last year, when an 11-1 Miami team was bypassed for the title game, Coker's crew short-circuited any possible scenarios in which the BCS computer could keep them out of Pasadena by running the table against quality opponents, including Saturday's 26-24 victory over Virginia Tech.

"No excuses this year. We're where we want to be," he said.

It wasn't easy. Because Virginia Tech's Ernest Wilford let a two-point conversion pass slip through his fingers, Miami didn't let a 16-point lead or the season slip away.

"Some teams find a way to lose," Coker said. "This team has certainly found ways to win."

Coker was relieved that Miami didn't join several other would-be national title contenders who have recently fallen by the wayside.

"I felt like a lot of pressure was lifted off our team," he said. "Had we lost, this would've been a great year. You never apologize for 10 wins and an opportunity to play in a BCS bowl game on New Year's Day or on the [Jan.] 2nd.

"[But] it would've been a tremendous downer for this football team, what they have done, what they had their sights set, for guys opting not to go to the NFL and have a chance to play for the national championship."

California dreamin'

Coker recounted a close call of playing in the Rose Bowl during his first season as assistant coach at Ohio State in 1993, but that by tying Wisconsin and losing to Michigan, the Buckeyes had to settle for the Holiday Bowl instead.

"I'm not a big parade guy. But my family, we always watched the Rose Bowl parade," he said. "That game was always 100,000 people, beautiful blue skies in Southern California. It's a great dream of mine." ...

Coker said he's diving right into recruiting. "Let's face it, we're hot, so you better recruit, get in the homes and seal things up." ...

Although QB Ken Dorsey (21 of 44 for 235 yards and one TD pass) didn't have a stellar game, Coker gave him his full support for Heisman honors. "We're going to play for a national championship and the reason we are is because of Ken Dorsey," he said. "You take him out of the mix and we're a different team." ...

Coker said the Hurricanes "were a tired football team last week." They'll be off until Wednesday, when Dorsey and the receivers, in shorts, will participate in a 7-on-7 practice. Regular practice will resume on Dec. 13.